In three words, I would describe myself as, "driven, resilient, and observant."

I’m proud to be the first-ever assistant to the executive and development directors, as well as work as part of the grassroots constituency team.

I am a native of Peru, Nebraska, and I graduated from Wayne State College in 2012 with a major in English, writing, and literature. Most recently, I served as an assistant editor for GenTwenty, an online lifestyle magazine.

Get The Newsletter?

Recent posts by Emilee Pease

With donations still coming in, suffice it to say that Giving Tuesday 2016 was the most successful online fundraiser in the Center for Rural Affair’s history. One hundred eight donors across the country raised $17,141 in one week. Thank you! Newman’s Own Foundation will match $10,000 and our friends at Small Farm Conservancy will match the rest.

We hit our original goal of $10,000 the day before Giving Tuesday, and were thrilled to learn that Small Farm Conservancy would match the money raised for the remainder of the fundraiser.

Mark your calendars: Giving Tuesday is Tuesday, Nov. 29, and the money you give to the Center for Rural Affairs will be matched by Newman’s Own Foundation, dollar for dollar.

Giving Tuesday hasn’t been around as long as Black Friday or Cyber Monday. But it’s a more fulfilling day, falling on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. It’s a worldwide day of giving created to support and celebrate nonprofits after the days of consuming.

For three weekends this summer, the Center for Rural Affairs will traverse Nebraska for the sake of local music and rural communities. The Good Living Tour is returning for its second year, and the Center is proud to co-sponsor again.

Wow, $10,335 in one week. Newman’s Own Foundation matched $10,000 of that, so $20,335 was raised for the betterment of rural America. This is the most successful online fundraiser we’ve ever held, and that is only because of you, our supporters. We cannot express our gratitude and thanks enough.

We made it under the wire (12 minutes, to be exact). Trust us when we say we sincerely dislike overloading your inbox with fundraising emails. But we know you believe in our work and want to see our programs succeed.

What was your least favorite school lunch growing up? Mine was salisbury steak. It was a strange textured mystery meat, coated in slick, salty gravy, and served with instant mashed potatoes- a true cafeteria atrocity I hope my kids will never have to eat. Our Farm to School program tries to make sure of that.

Farm to School is a national movement that encourages schools to serve locally grown food from partnering farmers. Our Farm to School effort has helped save over 140,000 children from these meals in 2015 alone.